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6. As sales manager for a nationwide electrical products distributor, you are about to roll
out a new line of electrical products. What method would you use to train the 500
salespeople in your national sales force on the new products?
The sales manager should use Internet (online) training to train the national sales force on the new
Ethical Dilemma #1 – Teaching Notes
Teaching Notes
This issue is discussed in the chapter, and it will be good to review the advantages and
disadvantages of hiring experienced (older) salespeople versus less experienced (younger)
individuals. There are certainly advantages to either group. Cutting Edge has used the
experienced sales force to build their business quickly and the results have been impressive.
experienced salespeople teach their younger counterparts? It is also fun to talk about what
younger salespeople can teach older individuals.
A critical issue in this dilemma is the affect on sales force culture of bringing in younger
company. An important consideration is continuing the history of company growth—can the
company afford to train younger, less qualified salespeople? Can they afford not to?
Answers to Questions
1. Craig McMillan has called you for advice. What would you tell him?
Again, the starting point is the chapter discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of hiring
younger, less experienced individuals versus older, more experienced salespeople (usually from
competitors). A case can be made for either model. Given the success of Cutting Edge using the
experienced salesperson model, McMillan will have to be sure management will buy into a more
“bottoms up” approach to the sales force. Younger salespeople will not be productive as quickly
trained in Cutting Edge policies and products. There will be less of a concern about old practices
from competitors becoming part of the sales presentation.
Ethical Dilemma #2 – Teaching Notes
Teaching Notes
This dilemma offers a challenge for students as it is possible to see the perspective of both sides.
Jeff Blake did make mistakes which cost the company the World Mart business. On the other
hand, should he be blamed when he was given specific instructions to do whatever it took to get
business at World Mart while not having the skills to get the job done? Who bears the
responsibility for making sure the salesperson has the tools to do the job?
It is written to explore many of the concepts and ideas in the chapter. For example, using the
dilemma as the starting point, a good discussion can be generated about the objectives of training.
Another area that lends itself to a discussion is using the dilemma to talk about the process of
determining the training program. In the dilemma, Bottom Line Consulting had not done a good
job or working through the process of developing a training program. As a result, Blake
committed errors in the project. As noted, it is possible to have a good discussion on who bears
Answers to Questions
1. What critical management issue does Beverly Hart face as she deals with the current
crisis?
The most important management issue is Bottom Line’s training program. The dilemma points
out that Blake did not have the training on how to conduct the research project, which led to
mistakes. In addition, other requests for similar projects had been received by the company, yet
2. Did the CEO overreact in telling Hart to fire Jeff Blake?
Students will likely respond, at first, that Blake should be fired and, indeed, given the problems
Mini-Case 12.1 – Right Times Uniform
This case does a good job of highlighting several factors associated with the recruitment and
selection of salespeople. Specific sections of the chapter where answers to the questions can be
found include “Recruitment and Selection Issues,” “Develop and Apply Selection Procedures,”
and Exhibit 12.4 regarding illegal or sensitive questions to avoid. Students should be encouraged
Answers to Questions
1. The recruitment and selection process can be analyzed with respect to the figure shown in
Exhibit 12.1. Concerning step one of the process, it appears that Steven, Peggy, and Tony are the
main players in the process and that Steven will likely make the hiring decision with input from
Peggy and Tony. In looking at step two, we can only assume that a job analysis was conducted
and a written job description was developed for this position. Likewise, we can assume that
Steven, Peggy, and Tony are working from a set of job qualifications as they evaluate each
candidate. At this stage of the process, instructors may want to ask students to develop a
The internal source was a recommendation from a current employee, while the external sources
were an ad in the local newspaper and a posting of the job opening on the Internet. Finally, the
last step of the process is to develop and apply selection procedures to evaluate the candidates.
This is the step being illustrated by the conversation among Steven, Peggy, and Tony. Although
the conversation among the three began with a discussion of topics seemingly unrelated to the
2. Specific tests Right Times could use include intelligence, aptitude, and personality tests.
The company could enhance its selection procedures and the likelihood of selecting the right
person for the job by using some form of all three tests. Intelligence tests are widely accepted by
sales managers as method of assessing a person’s mental ability to perform a job. An aptitude
find people who have personality traits, such as empathy and ego drive, needed to be effective
salespeople. However, Right Times should be very selective in deciding which tests to use.
Psychological tests have several drawbacks, including (a) some tests take a long time to
complete, (b) instead of measuring a person’s native abilities, a test could measure a current skill
3. Some of the questions asked of the applicants were clearly questionable and in some cases
illegal. Such questions should have been eliminated from the interviews. Questions regarding a
70 years old. Finally, we have information about one of the job applicant’s conviction for a DUI
ten years ago. While asking about convictions is not illegal, Right Times should make clear on
its application that the situation surrounding the conviction will be considered when making the
Mini-Case 12.2 – House Handy Products
This case gives students an opportunity to develop a training program for House Handy sales
representatives. Sales training is an important topic because continued growth of the company
Chapter 12 – Recruiting, Selecting, and Training Salespeople
depends on continuous development of the sales force and its ability to represent the company
and its products well. Students should be encouraged to be thorough when answering the case
questions since very little is left to chance when sales managers plan and develop actual training
Answers to Questions
1. New members of the sales force should receive comprehensive training on all aspects of
House Handy’s business. This would include training on product knowledge, House Handy’s
industry, the company’s policies and procedures, time and territory management, any legal and
House Handy’s industry. As a result, House Handy needs to spend significant time and effort
getting its new sales representatives up-to-speed with every aspect of its business. The training
requirements of new representatives differs somewhat from that of more experienced
representatives. More experienced representatives do not need the intense period of training that
new members of the sales force need. However, they do need refresher training on a fairly
regular basis.
2. Many methods of training are available for House Handy’s ongoing training needs. A few
options that would make sense for House Handy include on-the-job training (OJT), Internet
training, classroom training, and role-playing. OJT makes especially good sense for House
employee see how what was learned in the initial training sessions is put into action in the field.
Another method of providing ongoing training is using the Internet. Online training allows for
adjusting the amount of content presented per session, it is flexible in that employees can access
the training materials at their convenience, and it is getting less expensive every day. Classroom
training also is an option. The classroom’s main advantage is the personalized contact attendees
It’s unlikely, as CEO, that Klein was personally familiar with Blake’s training, and she wants
Blake, and indeed all consultants with the company, to know that such mistakes will not be
tolerated.
3. Should Beverly Hart fire Jeff Blake? Why or why not?
A very good case can be presented to fire Blake. While he did not receive the training necessary
to do the job, he was certainly capable of letting Hart know about the project and his lack of
research training. Blake had been told how important it was to generate business at World Mart
Some students may argue that Blake does not deserve to be fired. Indeed, the final decision
would include an evaluation of Blake’s performance at Bottom Line. If he has performed well, it
can be asserted he should be given another chance and provided the training necessary to do a
